A New Book, to be Given Away, Documents the Wrath of Hurricane Sandy

Gilles Peress An image from a coming book, “The Rockaways,” that documents the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy.

After Hurricane Sandy swept through the region, people wandered the Rockaways like zombies, cloaked in blankets to protect against the mid-autumn chill. Families were left traumatized by homes reduced to skeletons. For weeks, the elderly and disabled, trapped in their apartments on high floors, waited for food and heat.

A year later, Gilles Peress, a photographer for the photo agency Magnum, is releasing a book that documents the devastation of “the powerful storm with the innocuous, neighborly name,” in the words of the book’s editor, Hamilton Fish. The difference between this book â€" titled “The Rockaways” â€" and many other photographic compilations of the disaster?

This one is free.

“Photo books are expensive to produce and expensive to buy, and they do tend to be sort of rarefied,” said Stona Fitch, the book’s publisher. “Our book is pretty much the exact opposite of that.”

Mr. Fitch is a founder of Concord Free Press, a publishing house that gives its books away. All parties involved in an imprint’s creation â€" the photographer, the writers, the editors, the printer â€" donate their time and resources. Generous patrons foot the bill for any additional costs.

In exchange for a book, Mr. Fitch asks that readers give to a cause of their choice, report their contribution on the publisher’s Web site, and then pass their copy along to someone else. “The Rockaways” is the press’ eighth book. The previous seven spurred about $327,000 in donations, according to the publishing house.

The book, Mr. Fitch said, is part tribute to lives lost and part warning about disasters to come. “We’re in this whole era of extreme weather,” he said. “And it’s definitely not over.”

Mr. Peress is a French photographer who has lived in New York since the mid-1970s. He has documented the moments that defined the city in recent years â€" Sept. 11, 2001; the 2008 stock market crash; and Hurricane Sandy. “This was huge,” he said of the storm. “It’s important not to forget, because Sandy revealed vulnerabilities to climate change, vulnerabilities in the social construct of the city. And I think that this is a challenge for this city to address. It’s always dangerous to forget history.”

On Friday, readers can pick up the book at a publication party at PowerHouse Arena in Dumbo, Brooklyn. Starting on Oct. 30, they can order a copy online or find copies at a number of city locations (including McNally Jackson Books in SoHo, the International Center of Photography in Midtown, and Roger’s Irish Tavern in Rockaway Park.)

Mr. Fitch is not trying to revolutionize publishing, he said. He doesn’t think all books or works of art should be free â€" he’s simply kicked off a “small experiment in generosity.”

“Publishing a beautiful book is fun,” he said. “Trying to make money at it is hard. So we skip that part.”

Gilles Peress The publisher of “The Rockaways” is not charging people who want a copy of the book.